Braley was unopposed in the Democratic primary on June 5, 2012 and was re-elected on [[Iowa's 1st congressional district elections, 2012|November 6, 2012]].<ref>[http://www.politico.com/2012-election/map/#/House/2012/ ''Politico'' "2012 House Race Results"]</ref>

Braley was unopposed in the Democratic primary on June 5, 2012 and was re-elected on [[Iowa's 1st congressional district elections, 2012|November 6, 2012]].<ref>[http://www.politico.com/2012-election/map/#/House/2012/ ''Politico'' "2012 House Race Results"]</ref>

−

He is not running for re-election to the U.S. House in [[United States House of Representatives elections, 2014|2014]]. Braley plans to run for the [[U.S. Senate]] seat currently held by veteran Sen. [[Tom Harkin]]. [[Tom Harkin|Harkin]] will retire at the end of his current term, leaving the seat open for the [[Iowa's 1st congressional district elections, 2014|2014 election]].<ref>[http://www.desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2013301130049&nclick_check=1 '''Desmoines Register,'' "Register Exclusive: Bruce Braley weighs bid for governor," January 13, 2013]</ref><ref>[http://blogs.desmoinesregister.com/dmr/index.php/2013/02/15/breaking-vilsack-will-not-seek-u-s-senate-seat-in-2014/article ''The Des Moines Register,'' "Vilsack will not seek U.S. Senate seat in 2014," February 15, 2013]</ref>

+

He is not running for re-election to the U.S. House in [[United States House of Representatives elections, 2014|2014]]. Braley plans to run for the [[U.S. Senate]] seat currently held by veteran Sen. [[Tom Harkin]]. [[Tom Harkin|Harkin]] will retire at the end of his current term, leaving the seat open for the [[United States Senate elections, 2014|2014 election]].<ref>[http://www.desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2013301130049&nclick_check=1 '''Desmoines Register,'' "Register Exclusive: Bruce Braley weighs bid for governor," January 13, 2013]</ref><ref>[http://blogs.desmoinesregister.com/dmr/index.php/2013/02/15/breaking-vilsack-will-not-seek-u-s-senate-seat-in-2014/article ''The Des Moines Register,'' "Vilsack will not seek U.S. Senate seat in 2014," February 15, 2013]</ref>

Braley was unopposed in the Democratic primary on June 5, 2012 and was re-elected on November 6, 2012.[1]

He is not running for re-election to the U.S. House in 2014. Braley plans to run for the U.S. Senate seat currently held by veteran Sen. Tom Harkin. Harkin will retire at the end of his current term, leaving the seat open for the 2014 election.[2][3]

Biography

Braley was born in 1957 in Grinnell, Iowa, and raised in Brooklyn, Iowa. He earned his B.A. from Iowa State University in 1980 and his J.D. from University of Iowa Law School in 1983. Prior to his political career, Braley was a practicing attorney.[4] In 1983, Bradley married Carolyn Kalb and moved to Waterloo, Iowa.[5]

Issues

Specific votes

Fiscal Cliff

Braley voted for the fiscal cliff compromise bill, which made permanent most of the Bush tax cuts originally passed in 2001 and 2003 while also raising tax rates on the highest income levels. He was one of 172 Democrats that voted in favor of the bill. The bill was passed in the House by a 257/167 vote on January 1, 2013.[9]

Elections

2014

Braley plans to run for the U.S. Senate seat currently held by veteran Sen. Tom Harkin. Harkin will retire at the end of his current term, leaving the seat open for the 2014 election.[10][11]

Endorsements

Retiring Sen.Tom Harkin formally endorsed Braley as his replacement.[12] In a statement on April 20, 2013, Harkin endorsed the Representative, saying "Braley has fought for working people and the struggling middle class."[12]

Race Background

Braley defeated 2012 challenger Ben Lange in 2010 general election. Braley won by approximately 2% of the vote.[15]

Issues

Braley has been very vocal in his support of a wind energy tax credit in Iowa that is set to expire in 2013.[16] A full list of Braley's policy positions can be found at his campaign website.[17]

On August 1st Ben Lange filed an ethics complaint against Braley, on the ground that he had used government resources to aid his campaign by inviting voters to "Deficit Workshops." John Davis, Bradley's Chief of Staff, described the claim as "without merit."[18]

Media

The following is a political TV ad launched by Bruce Braley's campaign.

Full history

To view the full congressional electoral history for Bruce Braley, click [show] to expand the section.

2010

On November 2, 2010, Bruce Braley won re-election to the United States House. He defeated Benjamin M. Lange (R), Rob J. Petsche (L) and Jason A. Faulkner (I) in the general election.[20]

U.S. House, Iowa District 1 General Election, 2010

Party

Candidate

Vote %

Votes

Democratic

Bruce Braleyincumbent

49.5%

104,428

Republican

Benjamin M. Lange

47.5%

100,219

Libertarian

Rob J. Petsche

1.9%

4,087

Independent

Jason A. Faulkner

1%

2,092

N/A

Write-In

0%

76

Total Votes

210,902

2008

On November 4, 2008, Bruce Braley won re-election to the United States House. He defeated David Hartsuch (R) in the general election.[21]

U.S. House, Iowa District 1 General Election, 2008

Party

Candidate

Vote %

Votes

Democratic

Bruce Braleyincumbent

64.6%

186,991

Republican

David Hartsuch

35.4%

102,439

Total Votes

289,430

2006

On November 7, 2006, Bruce Braley won election to the United States House. He defeated Mike Whalen (R), James F. Hill (Pirate) and Albert W. Shoeman (Nominated by Petition) in the general election.[22]

U.S. House, Iowa District 1 General Election, 2006

Party

Candidate

Vote %

Votes

Democratic

Bruce Braley

55.1%

114,322

Republican

Mike Whalen

43.2%

89,729

Pirate

James F. Hill

1.1%

2,201

Nominated by Petition

Albert W. Shoeman

0.6%

1,226

Total Votes

207,478

Campaign donors

Comprehensive donor information for Braley is available dating back to 2006. Based on available campaign finance records, Braley raised a total of $8,421,503 during that time period. This information was last updated on March 17, 2013.[23]

Lifetime voting record

According to the website GovTrack, Braley missed 286 of 5,226 roll call votes from Jan 2007 to Mar 2013. This amounts to 5.5%, which is worse than the median of 2.2% among current congressional representatives as of March 2013.[27]

Congressional staff salaries

The website Legistorm compiles staff salary information for members of Congress. Braley paid his congressional staff a total of $1,068,191 in 2011. He ranked 73rd on the list of the highest paid Democratic Representative Staff Salaries and he ranked 94th overall of the highest paid Representative Staff Salaries in 2011. Overall, Iowa ranked 16th in average salary for representative staff. The average U.S. House of Representatives congressional staff was paid $954,912.20 in fiscal year 2011.[28]

Net worth

2011

Based on congressional financial disclosure forms and calculations made available by OpenSecrets.org - The Center for Responsive Politics, Braley's net worth as of 2011 was estimated between $222,019 and $770,000. That averages to $496,009, which is lower than the average net worth of Democratic Representatives in 2011 of $5,107,874. His average net worth increased by 13.89% from 2010.[29]

2010

Based on congressional financial disclosure forms and calculations made available by OpenSecrets.org - The Center for Responsive Politics, Braley's net worth as of 2010 was estimated between $206,016 and $665,000. That averages to $435,508, which was lower than the average net worth of Democratic Representatives in 2010 of $4,465,875.[30]